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Myths and Facts about Carbohydrates and Your Health

As a fitness enthusiast, I hear people say, “Don’t eat carbs if you want to lose weight. Carbs are not good for you.” As someone who loves her vegetables, fruit and natural sweets (i.e. raw desserts and sometimes decadent, rich Jean Paul Hevin dark chocolate cakes), I’ve been tempted to think twice before I reach for that piece of bread, raw dessert, or even fruit.

This is why I’m writing this article today. I’ll discuss:

3 common myths on carbohydrates

3 facts on carbohydrates

Why carbs can help you lose the last 5 pounds and keep it off

The downsides of not having enough carbs

Why you need carbs after a workout

Before I discuss the myths and facts of carbohydrates, let’s talk about what carbohydrates are first.

Carbohydrate 101: What are carbohydrates?

Carbohydrates are used by the body to make glucose which provides us with energy immediately. An enzyme called amylase breaks down carbohydrates into glucose, and our body stores glucose in our liver and muscles for future use.

While some carbs are bad for us, some are actually healthy for us. There’s a myth that carbohydrates as a food group are not good for us and that we should limit our carbohydrate intake to lose weight, if not eliminate the whole food group completely.

However, just because one type of carbohydrate is bad for us, this does not mean that all carbohydrates are bad for us.

The Bad Guys

There are refined and unrefined carbohydrates. Refined carbs are those that are sugar laden and stripped of all nutrients. Examples include white bread, biscuits and candies.

Unrefined carbs are the good guys that provide us with lots of nutrients.

They are usually derived from natural food sources such as vegetables and fruit, and include both complex and simple carbohydrates. Unrefined carbs are actually good for you because they contain plenty of antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and fiber that are necessary for our body’s health. These nutrients help us fight inflammation and cancer, improve our digestive system, heart and bone health. In contrast, refined carbs don’t contain any of these nutrients or antioxidative properties.

Fact 1 – Some carbs are good and necessary for your health.

As I’ve suggested in the earlier paragraphs, unrefined carbs are good for you. However, avoid refined carbs by all means. Pick your carbs carefully.

Carbohydrates receive a bad rep, given the popularity of the Atkins diet in the 1990s. The diet is based on the assumption that people are overweight given the over-consumption of carbohydrates. Dr. Atkins suggested that we can naturally lose weight by reducing carbs and incorporating more protein and fat in our diet to burn stored fat more efficiently.

Fact 2 – Carbohydrates can actually help us maintain our weight in the long run

Let’s dig deeper into why some bodybuilders hold the above perspective. Some argue that carb intake may drive up insulin once glycogen stores are full, which stimulates lipogensis and promotes fat storage.

Muscles need both unrefined carbs and protein after a workout to replenish their glycogen stores, prevent further muscle breakdown and rebuild micro-tear (this helps alleviate workout soreness!) from exercising.

Of course, if you over-consume carbs, especially refined carbs, post-workout, then you may negate the effects of a workout and increase inflammation. This is why you need to choose your post-workout food sources carefully.

Some post-workout food sources I recommend include:

Banana

Sweet Potato

Brown Rice

Apples

Chia Seeds

Dark Green Vegetables

Carbs: Friend or Foe?

Bottom line: Carbs can be good and bad for you. You just need to choose your carbs carefully. If you want to lose weight, cut out refined carbs and incorporate more vegetables, fruit and whole foods in your diet. You’ll have a slimmer waist line, more youthful skin, better health, and leave a greener footprint. And no, don’t go low-carb. You don’t want to end up constipated.

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Why is it poorly written?What is your argument against this article?Please explain in detail what is wrong with it and how you would properly write it yourself.It\'s really hard to understand what you really mean with 2 sentences. But, for the information being bad. Go visit pcrm.org (physician\'s committee for responsible medicine) and tell me what you find if you don\'t mind.and nutritionfacts.organd any other site that isn\'t paid for by the animal agriculture industries.We\'re finding out more and more starches are actually good for you. But, you still need to eat a lot of veggies and some fruits to be healthy.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XVf36nwrawThis video is explaining what we as humans have eaten and subsisted off of for thousands of years.